The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-01-23
FLYING ANIMALS OF INDIANA
How the Winged-Squirrel Slides on an
Inclined Plane Of Atmosphere.
Strange Habits of the Various Species of Bats
Thousands of the Little Aerial
Animals in Wyandotte Cave.

Il Will talk to you" said Professor Collett,
about the flying animals of Indiana / want,
however, to first say something about squirrels.
The squirrel family is one Of the most interest
ing features of our forest life. In the early
days there were gray and fox squirrels. In one
nelghoorhood one kind would for time FREEDOM
mate, and then the other. In the earliest settle
ment OF the country-I speak of Indiana-black
squirrels were not only common, but most plen
tlfu near indianapolis and adjoining regions,
but for period of nearly fifty years have not
known OF more than four black squirrels to have
been seen In Western Indiana. Forty years ago
ground squirrels beautiful and graceful as any
thing can now think of in animal life, were SO
common that hundreds could be seen scampering
near the roadside in a days journey. their homes
being In hollow logs lying upon the ground. They
are closely allied in fact almost identical with the
Siberian ground squirrel so common in Yellow
stone Park and in the northwestern portion of
by way of Behring strait.
1.-The flying squirrel is about the size-slghtly
smaller, perhaps-of the ground soirrel 1t is
rare, and even when present in the woods is still
more rarely seen, they are secluded in their
habits, although one family will for years occupy
a favorite tree which affords shelter, protection
and home. An extra membrane from their
| arms is attached to their bodies loose flap of
skin. which in some sense is wing This,
spread out when they leap from high tree to the
ground, makes kind of toboggan by which they
slide down the atmospheric incline plane. l
| have seen them make such atmospheric slides of
thirty to nifty feet at an angle of not less than
| forty degrees, SO that, while wonderful, it was
| not flying but seemingly sliding on an inclined
plane OF Air. And they their toboggan more
| frequently IN the summer than in the winter.
Like the tobogganers, they cannot slide back,
but have to climb up to slide down.
"Bats, the only other flying animal in In
! diana, we always have with US, though we see
| them only IN the summer season. They are in
| Vulnerable and always eregarious. Some old
| authors used to try to class them with birds.
| They made much trouble for themselves, as the
| flying mouse the German calls him, had no
| feathers but fur and four paws. Seemingly
| link between birds and animals, they placed
| at the end of the mammals and we don't know
whether they walked in on foot into the ark with
| the quadru peds or flew in at the window
''Their forearms have extension of skin
strengthened by supports equivalent to wings
and there the analogy to birds ceases. In
| home life in central Indiana they are not seen
/ in the day time. In 1868, during the war a lady
| observer one evening at dusk said iokingly that
| there was battery at her house | ought to see.
AS ali our thought then was of war and cannon
| 1 thought her reference was in that direction
| but could not guess what she meant She
| pointed to a tree with q large hollow limb and
| told me to keep my eyes on i. Presently a few
bats few out, then some more until thirty five
| or forty had been discharged from the battery
"a question has been going the rounds Of the
| newspapers as to what becomes of the bats in
| winter. had occasion to know that the gre
| garious instincts of these singular animals led
| them to assemble in great numbers in hollow
trees, chiefly in sycamores. and in the wonderful
caves nf southern Indiana. writer has OBJ
served the analogy that exists between the swal-
| lows and the bats. Each of these groups loves
| the air and is mostly seen on the wing The
food of both consists of flying insects, which they
| chase by their fine command of wing And it
will be noticed says this observer, that as soon
as the swallows retire to rest at dusk after
! clearing the air of the insects of the day. the
| bats come ont and take up the work, performing
| the same task with the insects of the night
Then. the dawn breaks, the bats retire and
| out come the swallows again.
"It has long been known that bats are able to
| thread their way among boughs of trees and
| other i'm nediments with an ease that almost
seems beyond the power of sight, and the ami
| NAL is supposed by some naturalists to be
possessed almost Of sixth sense, and it Is row
almost universally allowed that it is TO the ex-
| ouiste nervous system of its wings that the bat
| is indebted for this faculty. They climb with
great and rapidity, being able to hitch their
| sharp curved claws into the least rouchness
| that may present itself and they thus ascend
perpendicular wall with perfect ease and
| safety.
"A little girl once observed bat for several
weeks and afterwards. when womaR wrote
| about it. She said; AT last, to my surprise,
saw baby bat covered with light brownish
fur, but still looking as young mice look, under
the folds OF her THE mother BATS wing. l be-
lieve it sucked, for afterwards. when the mother
| again suspended herself against the side of the
| basket the young bat not in the cotton Tin the
| basket, and I fauced that it hung from the
mother while imbibing nutriment. The old bat
became furious if l attempted to touch the
young one. Her soft hair stoop up, and she
| would tremble all over and utter little short,
| sharp cries
"a writer in The Naturalist says Bats live
very active lives in the night, and when sunlight
comes they fly away to their holes, there to
sleep until twilight comes again, when they re-
sumo their occupation of insect-killing The
| female bat has hard time of it. She is the
nest, and has to procure food for her young until
they are themselves able to fly. Often have
seen female bat, with her young clinging to her
breast, flying about in search of food, and the
little ones were not small, either The old
ones make no nests. If they wanted to- ever SO
much, they have no chance on account of their
wandering habits and if they left
their young behind them, the exact locality
might be forgotten. When the young ones are
able to shift for themselves their mothers life is
easier, and until winter comes to XIII insect food,
she lives luxuriously.'
ssln the SUMNER thousands and tens of thou
sands Of bats assemble in Wyandotte cave, in
Crawford county. and in other caves. man
| living near Wyandotte cave, who had observed
them for years, said that frequently, in the early
dusk of evening he had seen column of these
flying animals from thirty to sixty feet in width
| and from two TO thres miles in length move from
the mouth Of the cave in straight line going in
a northwesterly direction. In short time an
} sother column would move toward another point
of the compass and then perhaps another, each
as long as the first, and az long within his Oh
servation without struggling and guided as by
! some reason or instinct that led these small
! Drained creatures to a known haunt or point In
! the morning they would return, not solid
: column. as they had departed but in large focks
, or droves passing into the cave, where they
| xrnu he fha pinp